In times of digitization and a growing literary market of diversity, the libraries enforce the information and knowledge and access to literature. Digitization supports the literary conversation both on the web and at the library.

Since 2002, Danish libraries have been running a collaborative website on literature called litteratursiden.dk. The growth has been explosive and today it has more than 200.000 unique visitors every month. Content is primarily being created by a team of dedicated editors and writers; however, registered users can write blogs, post comments, or join online reading societies to discuss reading experiences with authors and other users. It is an important focal point in the strategy to not only give access to books and information. The lively conversation on literary subjects is continued via Litteratursiden and the social media.

Ebooks and audio books have also become a part of the library. Through a platform called eReolen, Danish libraries have given access to loads of ebooks and audio books since 2011. As a part of this solution, eReolen have an ongoing dialogue with publishers on different business models. High circulation numbers on popular titles are by some publishers seen as a threat to the commercial market, but obviously the challenge seems to be digitization itself, and not the libraries. Literature in digital form

Today, literature is not only contained in books as we know them. This is Illustrated/indicated by the experiments of digital publishing development. SMS-short stories, literary apps, and digital literature is co-existing side by side with printed books. At the same time, the circuit of traditional publishing has literally been revolutionized by all this technology: Today, the distance between author and reader has diminished into one single click. Also, certain kinds of literature is living in closed environments and are hard to encounter without guidance. It is the libraries duty to evaluate and market both digital and experimental literature. Some years ago I was part of the project “Litteraturen finder sted” (The literature takes place), which scrutinized the way new forms of literature became a part of the local library, its materials and physical facility. Focusing on terms like digital literature, self-publishing and publishing at small publishing houses, the project became a milestone for libraries promoting exclusive literature.

It has clearly become more difficult to navigate online. Large and complex currents ofinformation makes it hard to choose what to read, what to believe and there is no longer a limit between those who publish and those who doesn’t. Therefore, it is more important than ever that libraries take action upholding the role as one of the last information filters of our time. In my perspective, libraries must inspire people to read all the good books buried in the shadow of bestsellers. It is crucial that libraries act different than commercial players on the market by choosing certain books from others and sharing their knowledge on these books both in the digital and physical library.

The library as curator Deep reading experiences are easily missed when you focus on one type of literature, and we are kept in the same kind of reading even more if we use the “customers who bought this book also bought”-function on amazon. It automatically finds the bestsellers and makes it a lot harder to cross the line into unknown territory where reading surprises you. At Litteratursiden, we see an increasing demand of lists entitled “books similar to Jo Jo Moyes” (or other popular writers). The good thing about these recommendations is that they are handpicked by a librarian, not a machine.

At the physical library, we also try to facilitate in new innovative and digital ways. The librarian increasingly becomes a curator who brings literature up front through different digital platforms. In collaboration with authors and other parts of the literary society, interaction between readers and the work itself is made possible – sometimes the reader/user is even asked to co-produce a part of literature itself. In this way, development of digital technology is helping us create more conversations and meetings at the library with literature as the main subject, and at the same time, it ensures a better and healthier society in times when gathering around literature seems more essential than ever.

Lise Vandborg, journalist and cand.mag in Scandinavian Language and Literature and philosophy. Since 2003 editor-in-chief at Litteratursiden.dk (Literature site) - the libraries site about literature. From 2000-2002 consultant at Nordic Literature and Library cooperation (The Nordic Council of Ministers).